Retinitis pigmentosa(RP)is an inherited retinal degenerative disease characterized by progressive photoreceptor cell degeneration, in which cataract—a common complication—significantly affects visual prognosis. Currently, phacoemulsification with intraocular lens implantation has become the main treatment for RP complicated with cataract. However, postoperative complications such as posterior capsular opacification, capsular contraction syndrome, intraocular lens dislocation, and macular edema occur at considerably higher rates in these patients, severely compromising the long-term outcomes of cataract surgery. Based on the latest clinical evidence, this review systematically elaborates on the clinical characteristics of RP with cataract, key perioperative surgical considerations, and recent advances in the prevention and management of complications, aiming to optimize the surgical approach, improve postoperative visual quality, and enhance long-term efficacy for RP patients, thereby providing an evidence-based medical reference.

Neuropathic pain, often featuring allodynia, imposes significant physical and psychological burdens on patients, with limited treatments due to unclear central mechanisms. Addressing this challenge remains a crucial unsolved issue in pain medicine. Our previous study, using protein kinase C gamma (PKCγ)-tdTomato mice, highlights the spinal feedforward inhibitory circuit involving PKCγ neurons in gating neuropathic allodynia. However, the regulatory mechanisms governing this circuit necessitate further elucidation. We used diverse transgenic mice and advanced techniques to uncover the regulatory role of the descending serotonin (5-HT) facilitation system on spinal PKCγ neurons. Our findings revealed that 5-HT neurons from the rostral ventromedial medulla hyperpolarize spinal inhibitory interneurons via 5-HT_2C receptors, disinhibiting the feedforward inhibitory circuit involving PKCγ neurons and exacerbating allodynia. Inhibiting spinal 5-HT_2C receptors restored the feedforward inhibitory circuit, effectively preventing neuropathic allodynia. These insights offer promising therapeutic targets for neuropathic allodynia management, emphasizing the potential of spinal 5-HT_2C receptors as a novel avenue for intervention.
Animals ; Neuralgia/physiopathology* ; Protein Kinase C/metabolism* ; Receptor, Serotonin, 5-HT2C/metabolism* ; Hyperalgesia/physiopathology* ; Mice, Transgenic ; Mice ; Spinal Cord/metabolism* ; Serotonin/metabolism* ; Male ; Neurons/metabolism* ; Mice, Inbred C57BL

Radiochemotherapy-induced oral mucositis (OM) is a common oral complication in patients with tumors following head and neck radiotherapy or chemotherapy. Erosion and ulcers are the main features of OM that seriously affect the quality of life of patients and even the progress of tumor treatment. To date, differences in clinical prevention and treatment plans for OM have been noted among doctors of various specialties, which has increased the uncertainty of treatment effects. On the basis of current research evidence, this expert consensus outlines risk factors, clinical manifestations, clinical grading, ancillary examinations, diagnostic basis, prevention and treatment strategies and efficacy indicators for OM. In addition to strategies such as basic oral care, anti-inflammatory and analgesic agents, anti-infective agents, pro-healing agents, and photobiotherapy recommended in previous guidelines, we also emphasize the role of traditional Chinese medicine in OM prevention and treatment. This expert consensus aims to provide references and guidance for dental physicians and oncologists in formulating strategies for OM prevention, diagnosis, and treatment, standardizing clinical practice, reducing OM occurrence, promoting healing, and improving the quality of life of patients.
Humans ; Chemoradiotherapy/adverse effects* ; Consensus ; Risk Factors ; Stomatitis/etiology*

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the clinical effect of minimally invasive technique in the treatment of moderate and severe gluteal muscle contracture. METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted on 85 patients (170 sides) with bilateral gluteal muscle contracture admitted from January 2016 to December 2019. All patients were treated with minimally invasive release of tendon knife. There were 32 males and 53 females, ranging in age from 15 to 37 years old, with an average age of (22.3±6.3) years old. Operation time, intraoperative blood loss, incision length, first postoperative ambulation time, complication rate, recurrence rate, and Harris hip score (HHS) were analyzed and evaluated. RESULTS: The average follow-up time was (16.2±4.6) months, ranging from 12 to 30 months. The operation time ranged from 7 to 15 min, with an average of (10.2±3.1) min. Intraoperative blood loss ranged from 2 to 20 ml, with an average of (8.4±2.2) ml. The incision length ranged from 0.6 to 2.0 cm, with an average of (0.8±0.3) cm. The time to postoperative ambulation ranged from 12 to 28 h, with an average of (20.0±3.2) h. All patients achieved primary wound healing without sciatic nerve injury or recurrence. HHS hip function scores ranged from 90 to 98, with an average score of (96.2±1.4). Complications included intraoperative tendon blade tip fracture in two cases (removed under fluoroscopic guidance) and subcutaneous hematoma in three cases-two resolved with compression and one with open evacuation.. Twenty-nine patients exhibited transient swaying gait postoperatively, of which 24 patients returned to normal after 4 weeks and 5 patients returned to normal after 6 weeks. CONCLUSION Minimally invasive tendon blade release is a safe and effective technique for treating gluteal muscle contracture, offering minimal trauma, rapid recovery, and excellent cosmetic and functional outcomes. However, it exhibits a low risk of blade tip fracture and sciatic nerve injury, warranting experienced surgical handling.
Humans ; Male ; Female ; Adult ; Minimally Invasive Surgical Procedures/methods* ; Adolescent ; Retrospective Studies ; Buttocks/surgery* ; Young Adult ; Contracture/surgery* ; Tendons/surgery* ; Muscle, Skeletal/surgery*

AIM: To explore the factors affecting the whole-eye astigmatism after pterygium excision combined with autologous limbal stem cell transplantation.METHODS: A retrospective analysis was conducted on the medical records of 42 patients(42 eyes)with primary pterygium admitted in the ophthalmology department of Xijing Hospital from January 2023 to October 2023. They underwent pterygium excision combined with autologous limbal stem cell transplantation. The maximum invasion depth of pterygium into the cornea was measured with anterior segment optical coherence tomography(AS-OCT)before operation, the length of the pterygium invading cornea, the width of the limbus and the area of the invading cornea were measured during the operation, and three-dimensional values of corneal astigmatism of anterior segment, index of surface variance(ISV), index of vertical asymmetry(IVA), best corrected visual acuity(BCVA)and whole-eye astigmatism were collected before and at 1 mo after surgery. Patients with astigmatism ≤0.50 D or >0.50 D of the whole eye at 1 mo after surgery were assigned to group A and B, respectively. The differences of clinical data before and at 1 mo after surgery between the two groups, and the correlation between pre-operative clinical indicators and whole-eye astigmatism were analyzed. The decision tree algorithm was performed to explore the influencing factors of whole-eye astigmatism at 1 mo postoperatively.RESULTS: The maximum invasion depth of pterygium in the group A was significantly less than that in the group B [80.00(40.00, 180.00)μm vs 175.00(123.00, 190.00)μm, P=0.002]. Preoperative BCVA(LogMAR), whole-eye astigmatism, cornea astigmatism, ISV, IVA and maximum invasion depth of pterygium were positively correlated with whole-eye astigmatism at 1 mo after surgery(rs=0.317, P=0.041; rs=0.545, P<0.001; rs=0.448, P=0.003; rs=0.389, P=0.011; rs=0.382, P=0.013; rs=0.391, P=0.010). The decision tree algorithm screened out two influential factors: the maximum invasion depth of pterygium into the cornea and preoperative whole-eye astigmatism. The risk of whole-eye astigmatism >0.50 D at 1 mo after operation was higher with maximum invasion depth of pterygium into the cornea >95 μm than that with ≤95 μm. Among the patients with whole-eye astigmatism >2.63 D before operation, the probability of residual whole-eye astigmatism >0.50 D was 88.9%, and the predictive model AUC was 0.804.CONCLUSION: The whole-eye astigmatism after pterygium resection is mainly affected by the maximum invasion depth of pterygium into the cornea and preoperative whole-eye astigmatism. When the maximum invasion depth of pterygium into the corneal is >95 μm and the whole-eye stigmatism is >2.63 D before surgery, the patient should receive surgical treatment as soon as possible in order to obtain good clinical benefits.

Neutrophil extracellular traps(NETs)are net-like complexes released by neutrophils and play a crucial role in antimicrobial defense. In addition, NETs can exacerbate inflammatory responses associated with various diseases, including diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and autoimmune diseases. Currently, the role of NETs in ocular diseases has received extensive attention. This article systematically summarizes the formation mechanism of NETs and their role in maintaining intraocular homeostasis under physiological conditions. At the same time, it focuses on elaborating the pathogenic role of NETs in the field of ophthalmic diseases, such as dry eye, keratitis, uveitis, diabetic retinopathy, retinal vein occlusion, and age-related macular degeneration, emphasizing the importance of NETs as therapeutic targets for ocular diseases and the potential application value as new markers for ocular diseases. Future in-depth research on the mechanism of NETs in ocular diseases will provide a stronger theoretical basis for the treatment of related eye diseases.

Vitiligo is an immune memory skin disease.T-cell factor 1(TCF1)is essential for maintaining the memory T-cell pool.There is an urgent need to investigate the characteristics of peripheral memory T-cell profile and TCF1+T-cell frequencies in patients with vitiligo.In this study,31 patients with active vitiligo(AV),22 with stable vitiligo(SV),and 30 healthy controls(HCs)were included.We measured circulating memory and TCF1+T-cell frequencies using flow cytometry.The Spearman's rank test was used to evaluate the correlation between cell frequencies and disease characteristics.Receiver operating characteristic curves(ROC)were constructed to investigate the discriminative power of the cell subpopulations.Circulating CD4+and CD8+terminally differentiated effector memory T-cell(TEMRA)frequencies were significantly higher in the AV group than in HCs(P＜0.05).TCF1+T-cell subpopulations were widespread increased in patients with vitiligo(P＜0.05).After adjusting for potential confounders,CD8+and CD4+central memory(TcM)cells,and CD8+TEMRA were correlated with disease activity(P＜0.05).The combined diagnostic value of the four(naive,effector memory,TcM,and TEMRA)CD8+TCF1+T-cell subsets was relatively high(area under the ROC curve(AUC)=0.804,sensitivity=71.70％,specificity=8334％),and the CD8+T-cell subsets combination per-formed well in discriminating disease activity(AUC=0.849,sensitivity=70.97％,specificity=90.91％).We demonstrated an altered circulating memory T-cell profile and increased TCF1+T-cell percentage in patients with vitiligo.T-cell subpopulations had a strong value for vitiligo diagnosis and activity evaluation.This evidence presents a potential new pharmacological target for inhibiting autoimmunity that leads to vitiligo.

Vitiligo is an immune memory skin disease. T-cell factor 1 (TCF1) is essential for maintaining the memory T-cell pool. There is an urgent need to investigate the characteristics of peripheral memory T-cell profile and TCF1⁺ T-cell frequencies in patients with vitiligo. In this study, 31 patients with active vitiligo (AV), 22 with stable vitiligo (SV), and 30 healthy controls (HCs) were included. We measured circulating memory and TCF1⁺ T-cell frequencies using flow cytometry. The Spearman's rank test was used to evaluate the correlation between cell frequencies and disease characteristics. Receiver operating characteristic curves (ROC) were constructed to investigate the discriminative power of the cell subpopulations. Circulating CD4⁺ and CD8⁺ terminally differentiated effector memory T-cell (T_EMRA) frequencies were significantly higher in the AV group than in HCs (P < 0.05). TCF1⁺ T-cell subpopulations were widespread increased in patients with vitiligo (P < 0.05). After adjusting for potential confounders, CD8⁺ and CD4⁺ central memory (T_CM) cells, and CD8⁺ T_EMRA were correlated with disease activity (P < 0.05). The combined diagnostic value of the four (naïve, effector memory, T_CM, and T_EMRA) CD8⁺TCF1⁺ T-cell subsets was relatively high (area under the ROC curve (AUC) = 0.804, sensitivity = 71.70%, specificity = 83.34%), and the CD8⁺ T-cell subsets combination performed well in discriminating disease activity (AUC = 0.849, sensitivity = 70.97%, specificity = 90.91%). We demonstrated an altered circulating memory T-cell profile and increased TCF1⁺ T-cell percentage in patients with vitiligo. T-cell subpopulations had a strong value for vitiligo diagnosis and activity evaluation. This evidence presents a potential new pharmacological target for inhibiting autoimmunity that leads to vitiligo.

AIM:To investigate the differences in clinical features and therapeutic effects of the tea tree oil wipes combined with deep massages of the meibomian glands for different age groups of patients with demodex blepharitis.METHODS:The clinical data of 146 patients(292 eyes)diagnosed with demodex blepharitis, hospitalized in Department of Ophthalmology, Xijing Hospital from January 2023 to October 2023, was collected in this retrospective study, and the patients were divided into group A(64 cases with 128 eyes)aged ≤45 years old and group B(82 cases with 164 eyes)aged >45 years old according to different ages. The differences in total numbers of binocular mites, Schirmer I tests, symptom and sign scores before, and at 1 and 3 mo after the treatment of the tea tree oil wipes combined with deep massages of the meibomian glands were analyzed between the two groups.RESULTS: Before the treatments, the total number of the mites in the group A [7(6, 8)] was lower than that in the group B [8(7, 9.25); P<0.05]. The dry eye score in the group A [6(6, 7)] was lower than that in the group B [11(10, 12); P<0.001], and the ocular surface irritation symptom score in the group A [10(9, 11)] was higher than that in the group B [6(6, 7); P<0.001]. Both groups experienced a decrease in mite counts and improvement in symptoms and signs scores at 1 mo after treatment, and there was still a degree of improvement in all clinical indicators, with patients in the group B showing a further reduction in mite counts [-1(-3, 0)] even after the treatment was continued for 3 mo.CONCLUSION:The total numbers of mites in patients of older than 45 years old were higher than those in patients of ages younger than 45, and older patients have more serious dry eyes, with less serious symptoms of ocular surface irritation. The treatment can effectively reduce the number of mites in patients of different ages with demodex blepharitis, but the outcomes of Schirmer I tests do not change after the treatment. Longer treatment duration provide sustained clinical benefits.